Driving around the island - thoughts on itinerary?

[vjsprang]

We are hoping to rent a vehicle so we can explore St. Maarten on our own. We are a family of 6 (kids ages 9, 8, 6, 3 - my extended family will be there too but might be on their own that day). So, first question - do we need to rent a VAN? Or could we get by with a full-size sedan? Are there carseat laws on St.Maarten like in the US or could we just put all our kids together in the back seat (they are all thin).

 

Second question - we are in port from 8am-5pm. We'd like to go to Marigot and to the Fort, get a pastry at Sarafina's, spend some beach time at LeGalion, possibly shop just a bit in Philipsburg. But my husband is also a photographer and wants to go to Maho to take pics. Whats the best way to accomplish all this? Or is that too much for our time there?

[faroozi]

I'm not sure about your itinerary, but regardless of the seatbelt laws, I would recommend that you rent a van and have your entire family in seatbelts while driving in an unfamiliar foreign country. The slightly extra money would be worth the safety and peace of mind.

[vjsprang]

Yes, I think we are going to opt for a van. I learned we could rent a car seat with the car so I think we will do that. My thought was, if we couldn't rent a car seat, our 3 year old would be safest on my lap since she is so small (24 lbs) and then a car would be big enough. But I definitely think a van is the way to go.

 

Any must-see stops that I'm missing?

[Karysa]

We are hoping to rent a vehicle so we can explore St. Maarten on our own. We are a family of 6 (kids ages 9, 8, 6, 3 - my extended family will be there too but might be on their own that day). So, first question - do we need to rent a VAN? Or could we get by with a full-size sedan? Are there carseat laws on St.Maarten like in the US or could we just put all our kids together in the back seat (they are all thin).

 

Second question - we are in port from 8am-5pm. We'd like to go to Marigot and to the Fort, get a pastry at Sarafina's, spend some beach time at LeGalion, possibly shop just a bit in Philipsburg. But my husband is also a photographer and wants to go to Maho to take pics. Whats the best way to accomplish all this? Or is that too much for our time there?

 

 

Drivers and passengers must wear seatbelts in St . Maarten and children under 4 must be in child car seats. They also have strict drinking and driving rules especially on the French side of the island where the legal limit is 0.05.

 

For me personally this is too much to do by car in one short day. The reasons I say this are because parking in Marigot will likely leave you 10 minutes walk from where you want to be and quite likely you will have to park by the salt pond in Philipsburg and walk 15 minutes to Front St to shop. So with adding the time to buckle everyone in the van that's 1 hour right there.

 

The other issue is that you get in at 8 which is far to early to head to Maho as only the small planes come in before 10:00. Given the fact that 11-2 is the best time to see the big jets at Maho it leaves you to make some tough choices.

 

If you have to take two vehicles anyways, how do you feel about splitting up? You can all go to Marigot and visit the fort and the market and Serafina's bakery. Mom's vehicle with another family member and the two smallest children can go to the beautiful and shallow and calm Le Galion beach. Dad's vehicle with the two older children can go to Maho where they can swim and take pictures of the planes. You can then meet in Philipsburg say at the court house at 2:30 and shop for an hour and then head back to the port and turn the cars in and walk over to the ship before 4:30.

 

As you look like you have done your homework you probably have read about the new 3:00 bridge opening time that will affect the traffic coming from Maho in the afternoon. This will likely throw a wrench into cruisers plans who want to visit Maho in the afternoon and make it back to their ship by 4:30.

 

Hope this helps.:)

Edited November 25, 2013 by Karysa

[shellunderwater]

Arrived on the Oasis of the Seas with a total of 6 ships in port. Had a reservation for a Corolla-sized car with Hertz. Follow the signs in the port to the car rentals, very easy to find. You fill out the paperwork at the port, then they drive you to a building to pick up your car. They were very nice and easy to work with. We got a GPS with the car, and it was programmed with the locations of just about everything. One thing we couldn't find on the GPS was LeGalion Beach. But, we used their map to get there from Orient Beach (about a mile down the road), so it was very easy.

 

We drove over the hill to Marigot to go to the market. By the time we got there, the only parking to be had was probably 10 - 15 minutes from the market. We decided to just skip it. But, know the traffic was bad.

 

We used the GPS to take us over to Orient Beach. Got out of the car and walked out onto the beach. The waves were really rough, but in fairness, the ocean was incredibly rough during the cruise, so this makes sense. We decided to go to LeGalion instead.

 

Galion was so much smoother. There are reefs off-shore that break the waves before they reach shore. There is a building with restrooms, gift shop, chair and umbrella rental and food. There is also an area of floats that creates a swimming area. Not sure what its for, maybe for kids. We didn't use it, since it was at that far end of the beach.

 

Food was good/average. Had grilled chicken and grilled mahi meals. Not bad food. Beers were about $4 -5, after conversion to USD. Food, drink ( 2 beers and a soda) and rentals (2 chairs and umbrella) were $70, cash only. No cards accepted.

 

Note, this is a beach that permits topless sunbathing. There were a few folks doing this. No one seemed to mind, and they didn't make a big deal about it. It is permitted anywhere on the French side, I believe.

 

Easy drive back to the port with the rental. There is a gas station just outside the port area. Make sure it gets filled up. They Hertz guy gave me a bit of grief since it was about 1/16 under full. But, I used the full service at SOL. Used $17 USD for the day. But, maybe it needed $20, since it wasn't quite full.

 

Overall a nice day. We only did some shopping in the port area, not in town.

[Karysa]

Arrived on the Oasis of the Seas with a total of 6 ships in port. Had a reservation for a Corolla-sized car with Hertz. Follow the signs in the port to the car rentals, very easy to find. You fill out the paperwork at the port, then they drive you to a building to pick up your car. They were very nice and easy to work with. We got a GPS with the car, and it was programmed with the locations of just about everything. One thing we couldn't find on the GPS was LeGalion Beach. But, we used their map to get there from Orient Beach (about a mile down the road), so it was very easy.

 

We drove over the hill to Marigot to go to the market. By the time we got there, the only parking to be had was probably 10 - 15 minutes from the market. We decided to just skip it. But, know the traffic was bad.

 

We used the GPS to take us over to Orient Beach. Got out of the car and walked out onto the beach. The waves were really rough, but in fairness, the ocean was incredibly rough during the cruise, so this makes sense. We decided to go to LeGalion instead.

 

Galion was so much smoother. There are reefs off-shore that break the waves before they reach shore. There is a building with restrooms, gift shop, chair and umbrella rental and food. There is also an area of floats that creates a swimming area. Not sure what its for, maybe for kids. We didn't use it, since it was at that far end of the beach.

 

Food was good/average. Had grilled chicken and grilled mahi meals. Not bad food. Beers were about $4 -5, after conversion to USD. Food, drink ( 2 beers and a soda) and rentals (2 chairs and umbrella) were $70, cash only. No cards accepted.

 

Note, this is a beach that permits topless sunbathing. There were a few folks doing this. No one seemed to mind, and they didn't make a big deal about it. It is permitted anywhere on the French side, I believe.

 

Easy drive back to the port with the rental. There is a gas station just outside the port area. Make sure it gets filled up. They Hertz guy gave me a bit of grief since it was about 1/16 under full. But, I used the full service at SOL. Used $17 USD for the day. But, maybe it needed $20, since it wasn't quite full.

 

Overall a nice day. We only did some shopping in the port area, not in town.

 

If you paid $70 for the car and used $17 in gas that's $87. If there were only 2 of you that is a lot of money for the short distance that you travelled. If you went to Marigot by taxi it would be about $20 and then $20 to Orient/Le Gallion and then $16 to get back to the port. So even with tips that's about $67 so you may have been better off going by taxi's. If there was more than 2 of you then renting might have been cheaper. It's nice to have the freedom of having a car but you also take the risk of fender benders or damage and the cost and hassles of this or if someone breaks into the vehicle and also you have to watch alcohol consumption as well.

 

Thanks for posting about your experience and I'm glad you had a really nice day.:)

[shellunderwater]

If you paid $70 for the car and used $17 in gas that's $87. If there were only 2 of you that is a lot of money for the short distance that you travelled. If you went to Marigot by taxi it would be about $20 and then $20 to Orient/Le Gallion and then $16 to get back to the port. So even with tips that's about $67 so you may have been better off going by taxi's. If there was more than 2 of you then renting might have been cheaper. It's nice to have the freedom of having a car but you also take the risk of fender benders or damage and the cost and hassles of this or if someone breaks into the vehicle and also you have to watch alcohol consumption as well.

 

Thanks for posting about your experience and I'm glad you had a really nice day.:)

 

Well, I apologize to the OP. Meant this as a separate thread. May try to fix it when I can log in again on a PC. Know that I didn't write this seeking anyone's approval. We rented for our reasons and believe we had a good time.

 

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Forums mobile app

[vjsprang]

No worries. Hearing about everyone's experiences helps us make better choices. It's hard to know what to do with a family of 6.

[Karysa]

Well, I apologize to the OP. Meant this as a separate thread. May try to fix it when I can log in again on a PC. Know that I didn't write this seeking anyone's approval. We rented for our reasons and believe we had a good time.

 

Sent from my DROID RAZR using Forums mobile app

 

 

I thought that you were providing valuable information to the OP. Your day and their plans are quite similar after all.

 

I brought up cost comparison. Positives of driving-freedom and negatives- possible car issues, known parking limitations and very limited alcohol consumption. These are important things to keep in mind in this port and others.

 

I was brainstorming, not judging. Sorry if you took it that way. Again as in my first reply to you. I am glad that you had a really nice day. :)

Edited November 25, 2013 by Karysa

[neptuno]

We found the pretiest spot at the dead end of the road in the Northeast corner of the island.

[Karysa]

We found the pretiest spot at the dead end of the road in the Northeast corner of the island.

 

Do you mean Anse Marcel where the Radisson Blu Hotel is?

[neptuno]

Do you mean Anse Marcel where the Radisson Blu Hotel is?

 

No hotel, it was pristine undeveloped. East of Anse Marcel, but drive thru French Cul de Sac, then north. Dead end road. It might be a National Park.

[Karysa]

No hotel, it was pristine undeveloped. East of Anse Marcel, but drive thru French Cul de Sac, then north. Dead end road. It might be a National Park.

 

So it was past where the ferry is that takes you to Pinel Island?

[gtaylor]

What is located over there is Grandes Cayes and then a bit further Petites Cays.

 

They are past the road to the French-side dump, which is often on fire. Park and walk.

 

We've only seen them from the water.

 

They are a part of the La Réserve naturelle de Saint-Martin.

gary

[Karysa]

What is located over there is Grandes Cayes and then a bit further Petites Cays.

 

They are past the road to the French-side dump, which is often on fire. Park and walk.

 

We've only seen them from the water.

 

They are a part of the La Réserve naturelle de Saint-Martin.

gary

 

 

Is this the area on the mainland between Pinel and Tintamare Islands?

[vjsprang]

Just reporting back - we had absolutely horrible luck trying to drive around the island. It took almost an hour to get our rental car (even though we had already reserved one), the traffic was HORRIBLE and it took almost an hour an a half to drive from port to Marigot, another 20 minute to find parking in Marigot, and then Sarafina's was closed (it was a Monday...still no idea why it was closed). We walked around for an hour, but by this time my husband was so stressed from the driving and parking he was worried about being able to make our other stops and still be able to get the car back on time, that we ended up going back to the port. Even so, we got there about 3:00 and all-aboard was 4:30, so he may have been right. I wish we would have skipped Marigot and renting our own car and just gone to LeGalion.

 

It was definitely the worst port day of our cruise :( I would definitely not suggest renting...at least for a family with lots of kids, like us.

[Karysa]

Just reporting back - we had absolutely horrible luck trying to drive around the island. It took almost an hour to get our rental car (even though we had already reserved one), the traffic was HORRIBLE and it took almost an hour an a half to drive from port to Marigot, another 20 minute to find parking in Marigot, and then Sarafina's was closed (it was a Monday...still no idea why it was closed). We walked around for an hour, but by this time my husband was so stressed from the driving and parking he was worried about being able to make our other stops and still be able to get the car back on time, that we ended up going back to the port. Even so, we got there about 3:00 and all-aboard was 4:30, so he may have been right. I wish we would have skipped Marigot and renting our own car and just gone to LeGalion.

 

It was definitely the worst port day of our cruise :( I would definitely not suggest renting...at least for a family with lots of kids, like us.

 

 

Thanks for coming back and reporting on your experience. I wish that things had worked out better. I have a few questions that may help future cruisers planning on renting a car. How many ships were in port? What time did you get off of the ship? Which car rental agency did you rent from? Did you rent a mini-van or something larger?

[neptuno]

vjsprang- Sorry to hear you had a bad day; hopefully you did not rent a car on my recommendation alone. Traffic can be slow. And driving and parking is not for everyone. Although many have recommended that I use a tour for our family, I have now rented a car three times on St. Maarten, and will rent again the next time we visit. It is a personal choice, and we prefer the freedom to explore and linger on our own. Hopefully no hard feelings.

[cruisenfromjersey]

We are going to be in St. Martin on the 29th of Jan. How far is it to Orient beach? There are 8 of us, all adults. How much is a taxi to get there.

If any one can help me I really appreciate it. Also cost of chair rental and umbrella's if you can.

 

Thank You

[Karysa]

We are going to be in St. Martin on the 29th of Jan. How far is it to Orient beach? There are 8 of us, all adults. How much is a taxi to get there.

If any one can help me I really appreciate it. Also cost of chair rental and umbrella's if you can.

 

Thank You

 

For 6-14 people I believe the price from the port to Orient to be $6 pp each way. I haven't been for a while but we paid $15 for 2 chairs, an umbrella and a couple of drinks that were part of the package. The end of the beach by Orange Fever and Pedro's near the clothing optional section has $ for E prices and they tend to be a little cheaper on the whole.

[gtaylor]

Correct, $6 per person for your group to Orient.

 

(click)

 

Last May Orange Fever offered a chair with umbrella and a free drink with bathroom and shower privileges for $7 per person. That's still our recommendation.

 

gary

[vjsprang]

vjsprang- Sorry to hear you had a bad day; hopefully you did not rent a car on my recommendation alone. Traffic can be slow. And driving and parking is not for everyone. Although many have recommended that I use a tour for our family, I have now rented a car three times on St. Maarten, and will rent again the next time we visit. It is a personal choice, and we prefer the freedom to explore and linger on our own. Hopefully no hard feelings.

 

No worries. I am a ridiculous type A perfectionist so I researched everything down the last detail. I really thought we'd be fine renting, and honestly, I think it was just a string of back luck. If I ever make it back to St. Maarten, I'd have no qualms about driving around the island, it just didn't work out well with our short schedule and large group.

[vjsprang]

Thanks for coming back and reporting on your experience. I wish that things had worked out better. I have a few questions that may help future cruisers planning on renting a car. How many ships were in port? What time did you get off of the ship? Which car rental agency did you rent from? Did you rent a mini-van or something larger?

 

We got off the boat later than we had hoped - just after 9AM. There were 2 ships in port, total port load of 7500. We rented from Hertz, and they were super-nice, the price was right, they were just really slow. We had planned on a 9 passenger van, but we had exactly 9 passengers and they didn't want us to be crammed in there so they gave us a 12 passenger for the same price. I think this switch may have accounted for some of the extra time we had to wait. I don't know if this makes a difference or not, but it had rained most of the morning too. Someone who lived on the island told us when it rains, traffic increases a lot because a lot of locals walk when it's nice? Like I said, it wasn't St. Maarten's fault - just bad luck for us.

[Karysa]

We got off the boat later than we had hoped - just after 9AM. There were 2 ships in port, total port load of 7500. We rented from Hertz, and they were super-nice, the price was right, they were just really slow. We had planned on a 9 passenger van, but we had exactly 9 passengers and they didn't want us to be crammed in there so they gave us a 12 passenger for the same price. I think this switch may have accounted for some of the extra time we had to wait. I don't know if this makes a difference or not, but it had rained most of the morning too. Someone who lived on the island told us when it rains, traffic increases a lot because a lot of locals walk when it's nice? Like I said, it wasn't St. Maarten's fault - just bad luck for us.

 

It really sounds that the stars were not aligned for you that day. :(